Sowell Financial Services LLC Invests $912,000 in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 8,142 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $912,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GILD. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 20.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,359 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,326,000 after acquiring an additional 2,450 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 45.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 14,404 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,330,000 after purchasing an additional 4,468 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 78.0% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,658 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,165 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 51.1% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 3,789 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 1,281 shares during the period. Finally, Callahan Advisors LLC boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 109.3% during the fourth quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 6,540 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $604,000 after purchasing an additional 3,415 shares during the period. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $108.50. 23,266,621 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,756,139. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12-month low of $66.01 and a 12-month high of $119.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $134.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.84, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $106.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $102.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.23.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.04. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 51.93% and a net margin of 20.76%. The firm had revenue of $6.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.77 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($1.32) EPS. The business's revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio is presently 66.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on GILD shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $110.55.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.40, for a total transaction of $266,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 168,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,893,713.60. This represents a 1.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel Patrick O'day sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.42, for a total value of $1,104,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 620,268 shares of the company's stock, valued at $68,489,992.56. The trade was a 1.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 48,500 shares of company stock valued at $5,236,245 in the last ninety days. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines in the areas of unmet medical need in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides Biktarvy, Genvoya, Descovy, Odefsey, Truvada, Complera/ Eviplera, Stribild, Sunlencs, and Atripla products for the treatment of HIV/AIDS; Veklury, an injection for intravenous use, for the treatment of COVID-19; and Epclusa, Harvoni, Vemlidy, and Viread for the treatment of viral hepatitis.